Great Scott!!  October 21, 2015 is the date that Marty McFly travels to the future to chase down Biff Tannin.  You see, Biff has traveled to/fro the future and has gotten his hands on an almanac that allows him to predict every recorded sporting event since 1989.  Of course, riches follow.  Power and corruption soon follow.  That Biff.

It is a cool thing that we can compare the technological predictions made in the movie to what has actually occurred in real life.  Such an impressive list would include:

• Hover Boards – Not yet on the market, but they do exist.
• Google Glass
• Video conference calls
• Tablet computers
• Self Tying shoes – On their way.
• Finger Print Recognition

I’ve heard from a third cousin’s husband’s friend that another technology prediction put forth by the movie, unfortunately ended up on the editing floor.  But, it would have been spot on.  What was it?  Remote site continuous battery monitoring!

So, OK, maybe it’s not as suave as hover boards, but remote site battery monitoring is quite the accomplishment.  And, make no mistake, it is here…and affordable.

In order to time travel, Doc Brown needed three things:  88 miles per hour, the Flux Capacitor, and (say it with me)…1.21 gigawatts!

When compared to remote site battery monitoring, that seems so easy.  I mean, in order to pull off remote battery monitoring. BatteryDAQ had to solve for the following historical road blocks:

• Hardware Size – The monitor must be compact, with minimal wiring, in order to fit into confined spaces, and allow for easy battery replacement, when necessary.
• Software Functionality – When gathering data for tens of thousands of sites, the data must be presented to the end user in a meaningful, actionable fashion.  Otherwise, it will be too overwhelming to review and understand.
• Accuracy – It makes no sense to implement a strategy that does not gather all pertinent health data, nor can repeat the measurements for trending.
• Robust Design – Correct expectations for cabinet monitors are that they will operate in and withstand extreme environmental conditions.
• Affordability – Battery configurations deployed at a cell tower (or other remote site) can cost anywhere from $2,000 up to $15,000.  As a design goal, the monitors pricing must come in at a price point roughly between 10-15% of the battery expense ($200-$1,500).

All of this criteria leads to very vision of BatteryDAQ.  The problem facing remote site battery monitoring has always been very real, but left unresolved…until now.  Now, end users can implement state-of-health battery monitoring and know the back up power will work as needed, when needed.

In other words, “It’s Nice to Know!”

Sentry in Telecom shelter

Remote data management